What’s Causing Your Stress?

Long gone are the days when sound sleep was a common affair, now is the era of sleepless nights.

From education to office, from finances to health, from deadlines to vows, everything nowadays is based on a heap of expectations. Not only this, with the increasing desire for social validation and the rat-race to compete there has been a sharp rise in the stress levels which in turn has led to several other issues.

However, like every coin has two sides, it is very interesting that where on one hand stress can cause several health issues on the other, it also plays an essential role in the normal functioning of the body. It is because of the stress that we become agile and alert about our surroundings.

Not only this, even our reaction to a situation i.e., the 3 Fs – Fear, fight and flight, is also determined by the stress hormones. And thence, it becomes very important to have a bit of stress in our lives, as it also motivates us, drives us, and keeps us focused.

Stress – Our Constant Companion

Nevertheless, excess of anything is bad and so is stress. If a person is always under the influence of stress hormones, then the in-built equilibrium of the body is disturbed. In addition, since these hormones stimulate our body for emergencies, being constantly in this mode can lead to high blood pressure, hyper-glycolysis, higher heart rate, etc…

Today, owing to everything happening at a much faster pace, we have become comfortably numb with stress being our constant companion. But it is also important to realize where to draw the line.   Since it seeps into our lives quietly and consumes us bit-by-bit, it is very important to analyze and know the causes and how we can deal with it.

What’s stressful for you?

1. Work Pressure

Work pressure is one of the most common causes of stress to build up. While a bit of stress can helps us stay focused and complete our tasks o time, excess of it can bring down our productivity graph sharply. Not only this, but it can also adversely affect your physical, social, and emotional balance, leading to a disturbed lifestyle. But worry not, for it is easily manageable. Set realistic goals, accept that perfection is a flawed concept, and be happy with your work and voila, you would feel much better and be motivated to give your best in whatever you do.

2. Layoffs and Unemployment

Imagine losing the first watch you bought with your hard-earned money, how would you feel? Of course, devasted. Job losses, too, are similar. After working for probably 4-5 years, one fine day you realize that you have been laid off. How would you adapt to the new routine? What will you do in the free time which wasn’t free till yesterday? What will people around say when they see you in-house for long? All these questions hover around in our minds and disturb us. Also, the fear of remaining unemployed for a long time, leading to gap years, is what starts bugging you.

Know The Symptoms

In such a scenario, the first thing is to accept the fact that it’s okay to not be okay. You may be frustrated or hurt, but it is alright to feel that way. So also, you should curb your hunger for/of social validation for, in words of Tennyson, “men may come and men may go, but life goes on.” With these two major changes made, you would be able to bounce back and emerge with more resilience and a renewed sense of purpose.

3. Financial stress

The onset of the pandemic has led to various changes across the globe and has impacted every sector severely. From education to inter-personal relationships, the pandemic times have changed the dynamics of how things were perceived and done. And one such change is on the financial front. With multiples layoff across different sectors, salary slashes, higher taxes, surging prices, and skyrocketing fees, the life of a common man has been all the more stressful during this time. And, that’s probably the reason why there has been a sharp rise in mental health issues too.

Stress Is When Surviving Becomes A Fight

Undoubtedly the situations are tough and trying, but it is very important to acclimatize ourselves with the ups and downs of life. Be economic recession or financial dip, international instability, or national upsurge, everything would definitely impact the life of the people, directly or indirectly. Thus, it is important to be patient, to have savings, and to talk to your close set of people regarding the same. We must realize that being paranoid will make the situation even worse and would harm our productivity in a long run.

4. Grief and loss

Everyone is quite aware of the fact that the cycle of birth and death is inevitable but then when we are hit by grave unforeseen situations, there would seldom be someone who won’t be affected by it. It is absolutely natural to be bewildered with the loss of a beloved and to enter into a state of shock. But, at the same time, we must reassure ourselves that, in the words of Tennyson, men may come and men may go, but life goes on.

Not only such losses, but also losses in business and power, and situations like breakups, divorces or rejections in jobs, instability in interpersonal relationships, etc… can also lead to stressful situations and may also lead to various health issues like depressions, bereavement shock and so on.

Learning To Analyse And Take Action

In such conditions, we must have faith in ourselves and appreciate the progress we make every day, rather than depreciating yourself looking at the bigger picture. We also need to reassure ourselves that instead of the 99 people who criticize us, it is important that we hold on to the 1 person who loves us, follows us, or adores us unconditionally. Moreover, we must understand that it is natural to not be okay and thence, it is important to vent out our feelings and give ourselves some time to recover and return back into the normal way of life.

Thus, all in all, we must let our feelings seep in and not suppress them, for if we do so or be harsh on ourselves, we would not only harm ourselves in the long run but also make ourselves vulnerable and gullible to the trials and tribulations of life. So be happy, be cheerful, and finding people with whom you resonate with and with whom you can be without adorning a mask.

Make Time For Yourself